Around the world in a brown glass bottle

By Stephen Crafti

May 30, 2013 — 2.35pm

Aesop, identified by its simply labelled brown glass bottles, is one of Australia's success stories in the competitive world of retailing. Established by Dennis Paphitis in 1987, what was once sold only in a hair salon in Armadale, Melbourne, is now on store shelves around the world. In December 2012, Natura, a Brazilian company, bought a large chunk of the business.

While many stores are closing their doors in today's challenging economic times, or moving from location to location to "chase" their market, Aesop keeps opening new stores. Several recently opened in New York, one on prestigious Madison Avenue, and the company now has close to 70 worldwide.

Aesop founder Suzanne Santos

While most businesses advertise their wares through all forms of media, Aesop's growth has resulted from getting their product out to market and developing new ranges (144 items in total) suited to those living in an urban environment.

Aesop primarily makes body, hair and skincare products. But their latest product is a pet wash, and a mouthwash has also just been released, with no alcohol or generic additives.

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"We don't try to replicate what's already out there, be it around the home or in the cosmetic world. And we certainly don't make any anti-ageing claims. We're interested in developing products that the urban dweller is looking for," says Suzanne Santos, country manager for Australia and New Zealand, who has been with Aesop since its inception.

"We've never taken out an ad. The decision was made from the outset to focus on our product and make sure what's inside the bottle counts," she adds.

As well as having its own "voice", Aesop has been extremely savvy in building business through architecture and design. The designs for each of their stores are unique, created in the context of the street and city in which they're located. Architect Sean Godsell designed the Aesop store in Oxford Street, Sydney, while architect Kerstin Thompson has just completed a fit-out for the top of Collins Street, Melbourne. March Studio designed several Aesop stores, from Flinders Lane, Melbourne to Rue St Honore in Paris.

While many see the entree into the American market as brave, particularly as the likes of Country Road withdrew, Aesop has been well represented in the States for many years. They initially wholesaled to stores such as Fred Segal in Los Angeles. Two-and-a-half years ago an Aesop store in Nolita, on New York's lower east side, opened in an industrial building and streetscape. For this store, architect Jeremy Barbour from Tacklebox compressed endless copies of the New York Times into paper bricks that have yellowed with age. The new Madison Avenue store is as unique, with walls stripped of any decoration.

While the interior architecture developed for each new store is highly considered, so is the furniture, layout and window display. But whatever the design, each store has a hand basin that allows staff and customers to try each product.

Unlike the fashion industry, which tailors a collection to suit climate and culture, Aesop sells the same products worldwide, be it Hong Kong, New York or down under. "Our top 10 products are shared across the globe. And the packaging is identical," says Santos.

Knowing the product, customers and the marketplace has helped elevate Aesop into a household brand. "We know who we are, who buys our products and the best way to get our message across. It's about being consistent with that message and not trying to capture a market that isn't ours. You simply can't mean the same thing to everyone," says Santos.